East Gwillimbury woman uses homour to fight cancer

Newmarket Era

Kristina Waddell has her imaginary boxing gloves on and her opponent is scary, relentless and elusive.
But she’s wearing the radiant armour of a smile into the fiercest battle of her life.
“I have a lot to live for,” she said. “I’m fighting for my kids and other people.”
Last year, the 40-year-old mother of three was diagnosed with colorectal cancer, which had metastasized to her brain. After undergoing several surgeries, recurrences, radiation and chemotherapy treatments, the East Gwillimbury resident thought she had the cancer defeated, only to learn the tumour had returned to her brain in September.
She went in for surgery yesterday to have it removed. Reports indicate it went well.
“I have to be happy. I have three kids, a great husband (Nick), great friends who all give me a lot of support,” she said. “I’m staying positive. I laugh every day, I’m still smiling and I joke about stuff. It’s the only way I can get through this. My kids keep me going.”
The laundry list of procedures she has endured since May 2011 is enough to make your head spin.
Colostomy, sacrum removal, brain surgery, countless rounds of chemo and radiation; it’s fair to say her body is waging an epic war.
There are people out there trying to make life a little easier for Ms Waddell.
Newmarket’s Laura Daly and her charity GetRecD is attempting to provide the small things that help Ms Waddell have more time for her children, Samantha, Sydney and Addison. She puts together battle baskets, pre-made meals and anything else that will help a cancer patient’s day-to-day life be a little easier.
“Every single penny we get goes to directly to helping somebody,” she said.
During its nine years in existence, GetRecD has raised more than $195,000 and the accolades are mounting. GetRecd recently finished runner-up as charity in the Living Me to We awards.
“Laura is awesome. She doesn’t have to do this,” Ms Waddell said.
Ms Daly and her brother, Ryan, started the charity to raise money for the Make a Wish Foundation and Canadian Cancer Society.
But in a twist of fate, Ryan was diagnosed with Leukemia and passed away in 2008 at the age of 29.
“My brother was my best friend,” Ms Daly said.
Throughout the process of her brother’s cancer battle, she learned many things about the difficulties with which cancer patients have to deal.
“I couldn’t do anything to help him, save making his day-to-day living happy and easier,” she said.
It’s with that attitude she has carried forward his legacy.
The battle baskets she gives are full of things that might seem small, but help cancer patients with their day-to-day lives, such as peppermint candies for nausea, baby wipes for diarrhea and gift cards to have fun or pay for gas.
Ms Daly also hosts nights out with cancer patients where they pick them up in a limo and do something fun and adventurous. The last night out included a helicopter tour of Toronto and an evening at Real Sports.
“We want to give them a lifetime experience,” Ms Daly said.
The most important part of it all is spending time with patients. Ms Daly and Ms Waddell have been talking once a week since they met in June. Their time together inspires each other to strive for more.
“When (Kristina) is cancer-free, her kids are going to be bragging about her to all their friends,” Ms Daly said.
Laughing, Ms Waddell smiles and shows her invisible red leather boxing gloves. “You curl up and die or you fight,” she said.